of black and white... and what's in between

A young blogging friend is currently in a dilemma about something related to the election – vote buying. He was furious to hear that local candidates in his area were handing out cash obviously to buy votes. Pati ang Ate at Mom nya, naabutan din ng dirty money. 500 pesos for the Ate and 1,000 for the Mom. Aba pang-burger na rin yon huh.

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My young friend knows this is wrong and he’s agonizing kung ano ang dapat nyang gawin. Tingin ko, parang gusto nyang aksyunan ang nakita nyang kadayaan. I already wrote him an advise by commenting on his post. Pero kilala nyo naman ako, hindi pwedeng ilang linya lang ang sasabihin sa ganitong usapan. So to Anthony and all the other young (and idealistic) friends of DS, this one’s for you.

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At your age, things like vote buying is really an issue because it blemishes the ideals that you have just embraced. Kakaumpisa mo pa lang na i-involve ang iyong sarili sa political issues ng Pilipinas and here are these devious individuals na sumasalungat sa iyong mga idealistic notion about election and the democtratic process in general. Kaya pag nakakita ka ng anomalya tulad ng vote buying, you feel strongly against it.

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What’s good about your reaction is that it only shows one thing: you belong to the better, potentially incorruptible breed. Dahil nagalit ka and thought of doing something about it. Samantalang sa ibang kabataan, baka tumakbo pa sila at humabol sa namimigay nong pera. Sila yong mga mas madaling bilhin. Sila yong paglaki, wag sanang ma-pwesto sa gobyerno coz they sure will turn out to be crooks.

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But as I said, vote buying is just one of the lesser evils you will see during election. Mas marami pang grabeng violations ang makikita mo. Gold is the better of the three Gs. The scene turns ugly kapag may kasama nang guns and goons. Just look at the Maguindanao massacre.

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Maliit mang issue itong vote buying, I’m not condoning it either. Coz in the end, it still is a violation of the law. Pero sa atin kasi, kakaunti ang may takot sa batas. Most of them celebrities, rich, powerful and influential people think they are above the law. Kaya gagawin nila ang gusto nila no matter what. Lalo na ang mga pulitiko sa panahon ng election. And that, my young friend, is another of the many ugly realities in life that you’ll have to deal with as you go along.

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You were asking kung ano ang dapat mong gawin. You have two choices: 1 –stick to your gut feel by confronting the evil head-on, or 2 – be wise and learn the principle of gandhi’s ahimsa satyagraha.

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If you opt for the first choice, I’ll salute you. Dahil bata ka pa at buong-buo pa ang iyong conviction about what is right and wrong, understandable kung ilaban mo ng patayan kung may dadapurak sa prinsipyo mo. At dahil sinira ng kandidatong nagbo-vote buying ang ideals mo, he should be punished. Bad sya for violating the omnibus election code.

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Before doing this however, just make sure that you have the support of your family. Dahil baka hindi mo kayanin ang laban. It could be a long, arduous and perilous process that will surely test your endurance, will power and conviction. Not to mention the abala and the potentially magastos na proseso. And for sure, mabubulabog ang dating tahimik mong buhay pati ng iyong pamilya. Remember you’re dealing with people who’s not afraid of the law and has the 3Gs.

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But if you choose to play it safe, being wise by employing a more subtle yet effective means of getting back at these violators, you will earn more of my respect. Coz by doing so, you protected something from what could be a risky situation: your family.

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Dahil masakit mang tanggapin, pero parang David and Goliath ang labanan pag maiimpluwensyang tao ang babanggain mo. Lalo na ang mga pulitiko. They can make your life a living hell coz they have all the means. Buti sana kung ikaw lang. Eh kung idamay ang Ate at Mom mo na tumanggap ng pera. Worse, ang buong pamilya mo. I’m sure you’ll agree when I say that it’s not worth to compromise the safety and security of your family dahil lang sa isang issue na meron ka namang ibang magagawa.

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And what’s that option? Ahimsa Satyagraha. Passive resistance. Without figuring yourself prominently on the issue, meron kang magagawa para labanan ang nagbo-vote buying na yan. Ikampanya mo sa buong angkan ninyo, mga kaibigan at kakilala na huwag iboto ang kandidatong yon. Tanggapin lang nila ng tanggapin ang binibigay na pera. Mas maganda kung maubos ang pera ng buhong na kandidato. Saka sila matalo dahil sa kadayaan nila. Di ba mas effective na punishment yon?

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Whatever you do, I hope you get out of this situation a lot wiser. I hope you learned that yes, life is indeed full of ugly things. It’s not as simple as black and white. You’ll often encounter grays that will challenge you and your convictions. Things that don’t agree with your newly-found ideals. Things that threaten your newly-adopted principles.

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But just like what I said, hold on to what you believe. Kahit pa wala kang magawang konkretong aksyon at this point. Just being steadfast with what you believe in is enough. Malaking bagay na yon. Coz it means one less corrupt soul for the country. At kung maraming kabataan pa ang mag-iisip na tulad mo, then may pag-asa pang magbago at umunlad ang Pilipinas!